The Great Speckled Attorney
by Yoshi-G-teh-First
Summary: Ryuunosuke is sick, and his friends take care of him! (Sorry for the bad summary, this is better explained in the story itself!) Takes place between Cases 4 and 5 of DGS. Some in-game spoilers. And some Ryusato (Ryuunosuke x Susato)
1. Chapter 1

So, before I start, I should mention this is my first official fanfic in a _really_ long time (I used to post on another account that has since been abandoned.), so I apologize if this isn't all that great. I also apologize if the chapters get to be too long. Anyway, on with the story! :D

This is a fanfic/sickfic of Dai Gyakuten Saiban (aka The Great Ace Attorney), which belongs to Capcom. Little to no major plot-related spoilers. I would place this fanfic between cases 4 and 5.

* * *

~~The Great Speckled Attorney~~

-Chapter One-

Ryuunosuke Naruhodou had been feeling off for a few days; he had a throbbing headache, his muscles were sore, his stomach hurt, and he felt quite fatigued. At first, he thought it all to just be stress related, seeing how he was anxious to take on a new case. However, he would find out just how wrong his deduction was. Today, it was all at its worst, and despite being so tired, he couldn't sleep for the life of him! All night he tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, to no avail.

Finally, once morning had made its presence known, Ryuu gave up any hope of even one moment's rest. He kicked the covers away, and sat at the edge of his bed, rubbing at his temples in the hopes his symptoms would all miraculously disappear. His hopes were in vain, as his stomach cramped enough to make him double over. He groaned in pain, as he wrapped his arms over his abdomen, initially unsure of what it meant. Then he felt something burning in his throat, and instinctively put a hand over his mouth.

' _Oh_ _please_ _no!_ ' he thought, as he realized what was coming, and doubting he could make a mad dash to the bathroom downstairs in time. As he panicked, he eyed an empty bucket in the corner of the room, and immediately stumbled over to it. As Ryuu leaned over the bucket, the contents of his dinner from the day before came back up in a single heave. He followed up with a few dry heaves before his stomach decided he was done. With his mouth shaking from what had just happened, he scooted away from that mess as best as he could. Ryuu never felt so terrible; his head was pounding, his muscles ached, his throat burned, he shivered uncontrollably, and now his chest was itchy. He just wanted to crawl under the covers and sleep! "This can't possibly get any worse..." he muttered, just before hearing his bedroom door open, and hearing the familiar voice of his legal assistant, Susato.

"Good morning, Naruhodou-sama~!" she chimed, thinking he was still in bed.

"Please no! D-don't come in!" Ryuunosuke frantically shouted as best he could. Unfortunately for him, Susato didn't hear him, and was already in the room.

"What did you s-" she was about to ask, before she discovered the young attorney in somewhat of a fetal position, sitting about a foot away from a bucket that reeked of vomit.

"Naruhodou-sama!" Susato gasped in shock, as she rushed to his aid. She knelt down in front of him, and with one hand, she raised his head so his eyes met hers, noting his chattering teeth, and the flushing in his other-wise pale face. With the other hand, she felt his forehead, and frowned in concern. As she did, she noticed him leaning into her hand; she thought it must have felt nice and cool to him.

"Come on." Susato firmly insisted as she stood up and held her hands out. "I'll help you get back to bed."

Ryuu nodded and held his hands out. Mostly out of fear that if he had said no, he would have received a "Susato Toss" from her. She slowly pulled him to his feet, and carefully helped him back into bed. Once he was lying down, she pulled the covers up to his waist, and propped his head up with an extra pillow. "Now, you stay put. I will be right back!" she said before leaving the room.

* * *

Ryuunosuke layed in bed, scratching his chest. He knew Susato had gone to fetch Iris, who was, as the girl herself proclaimed, a medical doctor. A proclamation Ryuu himself never wanted to believe, partially because she was only 10 years old, but _mostly_ because of his fear and loathing of doctors. Though, he would have to believe it, as Susato came back upstairs with, as he predicted, Iris Watson, who was carrying what appeared to be a doctor's bag. Ryuu anxiously gulped, as he had no idea what she had in mind.

"Susie's told me you don't feel good, Narudie!" Iris remarked sympathetically, as she placed the back of her hand on his forehead. "Well, we'll find out what's wrong with you and make you allll better~!" she reassured upon drawing her hand back to search through her doctor's bag. "Now, you do feel rather warm, so it makes sense to check your temperature first." Iris stated, as she conjured a small glass tube from her bag, and shook it a few times before holding it up to Ryuu's face. "Say 'aahh'!"

"Eh?" Ryuu opened his mouth, not so much following Iris' direction, but more so to ask what the glass tube was. But the next thing he knew, said tube was carefully placed under his tongue, and his mouth instinctively closed.

"Yes, keep the thermometer there, or it won't get an accurate reading!" said Iris.

' _What did she just call it_?' Ryuu thought, as he eyed the moving red substance in the glass tube. ' _A third-_ _monitor_?'

"Now a few yes or no questions while we wait." the young physician spoke once more. "Firstly, Narudie, does your head hurt?" she asked, and received a wordless nod. "I see. How about your throat?"

He shook his head. His throat only bothered him after he threw up, but had now subsided.

"What about your tummy? Is it still bothering you?"

"Mm." he nodded; he doubted he was going to get sick again, but he still felt quite nauseous.

"Noted. Are your muscles sore?"

Another wordless nod.

"Do you feel more hot?"

He gave a quick nod, when a few chills had struck him enough that he shook his head as well.

"Cold?" she asked as she carefully took the thermometer out of his mouth, and frowned at the results.

"Yes." he answered. "What does it say?" he asked, noticing Iris' reaction.

"38.8 degrees." Iris responded.

"I-is that bad?" Ryuu asked.

"Well, obviously, yes." Iris confirmed. "You have a fever; but at least you aren't delirious, that would be much worse for all of us."

Ryuunosuke nearly shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't have a fever! Having a fever meant he was sick, and he couldn't be sick! Not him! Not now! Being sick meant either taking bitter-tasting medicine or getting a shot at best, and going to a hospital and being surrounded by both of those and evil doctors doing who knows what to you, at worst! On top of that, he was still anxious to take on a new case. But how could he take on a new case if he was sick? Despite these thoughts, he took a deep breath and kept calm as best he could.

"Either way, I'd like to check a few more things before I make my diagnosis!" Iris stated, as she cleaned the thermometer, and searched through her bag once more. "Susie, if you would."

Ryuu's eyes shifted nervously as he saw Iris put something to her ears, while Susato began unbuttoning his pj shirt. ' _Now_ _what do they have in mind_?' thought he. It wasn't everyday that someone else was undressing him. Especially a woman! That alone made him even more nervous.

"Relax, Narudie." Iris assured him. "I just need to check your heart beat!"

Just then, Susato yelped as she got to the last button and spread his shirt enough to expose Ryuu's chest.

"What's the matter, Sus- Oh dear!" Iris gasped a little.

"W-what is it?!" Ryuu hesitantly asked, unsure if he really wanted the answer.

A still-stocked Susato motioned him to look down. As he did so, Ryuunosuke was horrified by what he saw: All across his chest and abdomen were irritated pink rashes accompanied by small, itchy red bumps. The stunned silence was short-lived, as a loud obnoxious laughter seemingly spawned from nowhere, along with its owner, the only other flatmate out of the four residing in 221B Baker Street, Sherlock Holmes. What he found funny, they weren't sure, but it didn't stop either of the girls from snapping at the great detective.

"Oh, pardon me, Naruhodou..." Sherlock spoke in-between catching his breath.

"...But this has to be the first time I've seen an adult come down with chickenpox!"

Another stunned silence followed.

* * *

So yeah, Ryuu's got chickenpox! Almost gave him the flu, but I thought chickenpox would be more interesting, and the flu is over-done in sickfics, in my opinion. I've never had chickenpox myself (vaccines FTW!), but I have done quite a bit of research before writing this!

Honest reviews please! I'll post the next chapter soon. c:


	2. Chapter 2

Hope you liked Chapter 1, because Chapter 2 is here! Enjoy! c:

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-Chapter Two-

"Ch-chikenpokkusu...?" Ryuunosuke hesitantly questioned, his native tongue ever so prominent. He sort of knew what chickenpox was, he just wasn't sure if he heard the other man correctly.

"Indeed!" Sherlock confidently confirmed. "Aside from the distinctive blisters..." he paused, and pointed at Ryuu's still-exposed front. "There is quite a bit of irritation. Don't tell me you've been scratching all this time?" He added, noting the absent-minded scratching motion in Ryuu's dominant hand.

Susato gasped as this was pointed out. "Naruhodou-sama!" she snapped as she grabbed his wrists and held his arms down on either side of him. "You _absolutely_ _mustn't_ scratch!"

"Or _what_? Am I going to turn into a chicken?!" Ryuu sarcastically asked, trying to break free of Susato's grip.

"No! But it will make the rashes worse!" she explained.

"Huh?" Ryuu stopped struggling in surprise to the answer.

"Yup! It's true." Iris added. "Scratching at the rashes excessively can scar the skin at best; and at worst can result in an infection."

"Treatment then would require a shot at the very least!" The great detective added. It wasn't necessarily true, but he couldn't help but tease!

Whether that statement was true or not didn't matter, Ryuunosuke yelped at 'a shot' anyway, and immediately did everything in his power not to scratch. He definitely did not want a shot! The mere thought of a needle jab was enough to make him shudder. After all, that was the reason behind his iatrophobia.

"Holmesie!" Iris snapped. "It would require medicine at the very least, and you know it! Now how about you make yourself useful here, and go fetch us a few things?" She then wrote something down on a piece of paper before handing to him, and shooing him out of the room, before he could protest to being bossed around by a 10 year old. "Now then, Narudie..." Iris came back over to Ryuu, and placed the other end of her stethoscope at his chest. "...Let's check your heartbeat! Take a deep breath for me, please."

As he did so, he saw the housekeeper come and go with the now-sick bucket, presumably to clean it out. He couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed, even if it couldn't be helped at the time. He also noticed Susato had let go of his wrists (apparently she trusted him enough not to scratch at that point), and was now sitting at the edge of his bed gently rubbing at his aching tummy, which actually helped a little bit.

"Heartbeat is normal." Iris mumbled. "And breathing is so-so." She then put the stethoscope away, and seemed ready to make her diagnosis. "I'd hate to say it, especially when it's an unusual occurrence at your age, but Holmsie was right; you have chickenpox." She stated regrettably.

"I see." Ryunosuke acknowledged, unable to doubt it himself. "I just have one question: How long will I be...sick for?" he asked, hesitant to say 'sick'.

"At the earliest, about a fortnight." Iris answered.

"Oh!" Ryuu was surprised by this. "So, I'll be better soon?"

"That depends on your definition of 'soon'." Susato spoke up.

"H-huh?" Ryuu stuttered.

"A fortnight is equivalent of two weeks." she stoically answered.

There was a brief pause before Ryuunosuke practically bolted out of bed. "T-two weeks?!" he screamed. "I can't take two weeks of leave! I've been waiting for a new case to take on. If I take any leave, one might come alon-" Before Ryuu could finish ranting, he fell into a harsh coughing fit that left him on his hands and knees. The coughing soon turned to gagging, and he found himself heaving once more. ' _No_! _Not again_!' he thought, as he kept a hand over his mouth in vain, as it spilled out onto the floor anyway. As he was reduced to coughing again, Susato got him to sit up, so she could clean him and his mess up, and then she helped him back into bed once more.

"Unfortunately, Naruhodou..." Holmes spoke, having seemingly re-spawned from nowhere, when in reality, he just came back from the errand Iris put him on. "...Being sick means having to miss out on the things you really want to do!"

Ryuunosuke pondered a moment. "So if it were you...You wouldn't mind missing a fortnight's worth of detective's work?" he asked, while confidently maintaining eye-contact with the other man, like how he did when he found an important contradiction in court. He knew the other man would not be able to handle it, in that scenario.

"Uh...Well..." Sherlock hesitated. He really wanted to say yes, he would mind, as being a detective was his livelihood, but when he about to say so, a look of pain came over his face. "No, no I would not mind at all!" he forcefully answered.

"If you say so..." Ryuu only pretended to be convinced by the forced answer, seeing how he saw Susato practically twisting Holmes' arm off. He tried to relax, but just as he did, he realized he was no longer distracted by his itchy rashes. "Augh!" he yelped, trying so hard to resist the urge to scratch. "Itchy itchy itchy itchy itchy!"

"Heh heh! I can't tell, are you itchy?" Sherlock sarcastically asked, before noticing Iris glaring at him.

"It isn't nice to tease the ill, Holmsie!" Iris snapped at him for the third time that morning. "Now please tell me you at least got some calamine lotion."

"As a matter of fact..." he ever so confidentially conjured a bottle of the aforementioned lotion. "...I did! Along with everything else you wrote down."

"Alrighty then!" Iris smiled as she took the bottle and opened it. "I'll need Narudie to sit up once more."

Ryuu nodded and sat back up, slowly this time. Before he knew it, his pj shirt was off completely (whether by his own doing, or somebody else's, he didn't recall), and in the process, discovered his arms had begun developing the same rashes.

"Looks like it's already spreading to his arms."

"It's spreading to his back as well."

He heard Iris and Susato speak respectively, as they both applied the cool, calming lotion to his feverish, irritated skin. Yet still, the itching would not subside! He wanted to scratch so badly, and his self-control was wearing thin. Ryuu struggled to get out of the girls' grips. He didn't even care about getting a shot anymore, he just wanted the itching to go away!

"Narudie! Remember what Susie said~!" Iris rang in. "No scratching!"

"But I'm still itchy!" Ryuunosuke whined, louder than he anticipated.

As the others pondered about Ryuu's predicament, a faint 'meow' from nearby prompted an idea from Sherlock. "I think I've got it!" the detective proclaimed, as he left the room and came back with 221B's only non-human resident, Wagahai the cat. The calico greeted the other humans with a 'meow' as if to ask them something, before Sherlock placed him in Ryuu's lap. "Now then, Naruhodou, where are you most itchy?" he asked.

"My back!" Ryuu whined again, not as loudly this time.

"Good!" Susato exclaimed, having caught on to Holmes' idea. "Scratch Wagahai's back!"

As Ryuu did so, the idea proved beneficial to both human and cat! Ryuu no longer felt any itching on his own skin, and Wagahai, like many cats, simply enjoyed the scratching. He even stretched out, so Ryuu would continue.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Iris said, as she excused herself back downstairs. She came up a few minutes later with a cup in one hand, and two small bottles in the other. She set the cup down on the bedside table, and opened the bottles one at a time, each releasing a small pill into her hand. This did not go unnoticed by Ryuunosuke.

"What exactly is that?" he asked, donning his nervous, shifty eyes once more.

"An ibuprofen, and an antihistamine." Iris answered, holding the seemingly suspicious medicine out in front of his face. "I promise it doesn't taste yucky!"

Knowing he was being watched by three sets of eyes (four including Wagahai), Ryuu reluctantly took the pills from Iris' hand and placed them in his mouth. He would have dry swallowed then, had she not held the cup out for him, too. He graciously accepted the cup, and took enough of a sip to swallow the pills. He then gulped down the rest, not realizing how thirsty he was until the liquid touched his lips. Once the cup was empty, Ryuunosuke realized two things: First, he didn't feel nauseous anymore, and second, he felt rather sleepy. He'd find out later that Iris had given him ginger tea, with some chamomile mixed in. Susato helped him back into his pj shirt, and then he layed back down. As he started to doze off, he felt something cool and damp resting itself on his forehead, while his covers were pulled up to his shoulders. Wagahai had also snuggled up to him, probably in the case of more scratching sessions.

' _What a morning this turned out to be_...' he thought before finally falling asleep.

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So that's chapter two! I plan to write a few more chapters for this story. Honest reviews, please! c:


	3. Chapter 3

Welcome to chapter three! Before I begin, I updated Chapter 1, fixing any errors that I came across that went overlooked previously. I apologize if there are still any that I missed in it, or in Chapter 2, I will go back and correct them as they are pointed out.

I'm also aware that Susato may be a little OOC, with being a _little_ bossy and all, but that's just 'cause she's worried about Ryuu, y'know? c:

Anyway, on with the story! Enjoy!

* * *

-Chapter Three-

Iris had just finished brewing some of her renowned herbal tea, and was pouring some into a cup for her current patient, Ryuunosuke, who had caught chickenpox two days before. It still boggled her mind how Ryuu could have caught what is often considered a childhood illness, especially since he wasn't a child. Although, the more she thought about it, she did recall one Inspector Gregson having a vaguely similar rash on the back left-hand side of his neck during their then most recent encounter. She also recalled that Ryuu had interacted with the Inspector on his then most recent case. She _also_ recalled the two events to be less than a week apart.

As Iris put two and two together, she sighed and shook her head in discouragement, and decided she would deal with the good Inspector later. For now, her patient was her priority! That's what she told herself while she carried a small tray with the tea, and some toast (as that was the most Ryuu could stomach at that point), upstairs to his attic bedroom. However, once she reached the attic, she was surprised to see the still sick Ryuunosuke at his desk, and attempting to go through some paperwork.

"Ryuunosuke Naruhodou! What are you doing out of bed, young man?" Iris asked as she confronted him, setting the tray on the other desk. Unless the situation was serious, like it was now, she never referred to her friends by their real names. In response, Ryuu had mumbled something mostly incoherent, though she picked up on the words "Not tired" and "Feeling better". Iris didn't have to be a consulting detective, or a defense lawyer to know that was a big fat lie! In the last 48 hours, the rashes had spread everywhere else on his body, he still had a fever that wouldn't go down, and he was still nauseous on and off. How he thought he was in any good condition to try and work was anybody's guess!

"You're a terrible liar!" Iris tsked and bluntly stated. "Anyone could see that. You wouldn't be allowed even _near_ the courthouse in your current condition."

Ryuu looked up in her direction when she said this, and glared as if she had insulted him. Not that he should have been surprised if she had; Two days in, and he already proved himself to be a _very_ stubborn patient. Bad enough it took him at least 30 minutes longer it should have, and a lot of convincing, just to take his medicine. After all, he only reluctantly took those pills two days before, because Iris had "promised" him it wouldn't taste yucky. Now, he wouldn't stay in bed when he was supposed to!

"Besides that," Iris added. "If you must know, no new crimes have been reported yet, thus no new clients for you, yet; And even if you did, as your doctor, I am not just about to let you take on a case, just because you've been anxious for it. Until your skin has cleared up, your fever has broken, and you can stomach food again, you are staying in this flat! Understood?"

"B-but..." Ryuu tried to rebuttal, but he knew his objections would be overruled. She really did have a point. He really was in no condition to do any lawyering; he was just reluctant to admit it to himself, and he didn't feel like arguing with a kid, anyway. "Alright, fine..." he mumbled as he slowly got out of his seat, and sluggishly walked back to his bed.

"That's better~!" She chimed in her usual polite tone, and followed him to his room, tray in tow. As he plopped down onto his bed, and sat back up enough, Iris had set the tray onto his bedside table, and handed him his toast.

"Remember: Slow, little bites." She told him. Ryuu nodded in response, as he complied. He would have attempted to take bigger bites, had Iris not kept an eye on him while he ate. Though he didn't mind taking bites as slowly as possible, as it would delay having to take his medicine a little further. He didn't mind having to take ibuprofen, but as it turned out it wasn't kicking in as well as it should have, so the next best thing? Liquid pain reliever, which contrary to the label claiming itself to be "grape" flavor, tasted so god-awful that it made Ryuu gag and want to throw it back up every time!

Try as slowly as he might, the toast always seemed to disappear way too quickly. Ryuunosuke grimaced, knowing the gag-worthy "medicine" was coming next, as he watched Iris open the bottle and pour a small amount into a spoon.

"I'm not looking forward to this any more than you are." Iris remarked firmly, as she held the spoon just inches from his face. "But wouldn't it be better for both of us to just get it over with?" A pause. "...Or do you want to repeat yesterday's incident?"

* * *

 _"Objection!" Ryuu shouted for the fifth time from behind his hands as the spoon was less than 6 inches from his mouth. The tasteless ibuprofen wasn't tackling his headache and muscle aches as well as it should have, so Dr. Iris thought the next best thing would be "grape" flavor liquid pain reliever, which contained paracetamol, which she hoped would work even slightly better. However, Ryuunosuke had come to know the medicine to be near vomit inducing, with nausea hitting him every time he had to take it!_

 _Susato's shoulders sank as she frowned. "But doesn't Naruhodou-sama want to get better?" she sympathetically asked, in an attempt to coax him._

 _"I'll get better without it!" the speckled attorney argued. He was really proving to be stubborn. Iris and Susato had both mentally been keeping note of each attempt:_

Attempt #1: The medicine went in, and he immediately spat it back out.

Attempt #2: He pretended to start dry heaving.

Attempt #3: Ryuu was blunt and simply said he didn't want to take it.

 _Now, this was their fourth attempt, and he had resorted to keeping his mouth covered, and saying "Objection!" whenever the spoon tried to reach his mouth. The girls could only look at each other in frustration, and agreement that giving medicine to Ryuu was at least 10 times harder than it would a 5 year old! On the assumption that 5 year old would not be Ryuunosuke Naruhodou. How he thought any one of those attempts would get him out of having to take his medicine, neither girl was sure. The worst part? This had been going on for at least 20 minutes!_

 _Meanwhile, Holmes had come upstairs, curious as to why a usually simple task was taking so long. Little did he know, he would receive his answer the hard way._

 _"Oh, come now, Naruhodou!" he remarked to the other man, as he casually smoked his pipe. "It can't possibly be that bad."_

 _"Beg to differ!" was Ryuu's only comeback._

 _"If you're going to try to convince him that, Holmsie, then you may as well see if you can't get him to take it!" said Iris, as she handed him the bottle and spoon. She didn't want to admit it, but she was getting frustrated by Ryuu's stubborn immaturity._

 _The great detective decided to take up the "challenge". The closest he'd ever taken care of a sick person was Iris, and even then she'd more than willingly take her medicine. So what challenge would a grown adult be?_

 _"Alright, Naruhodou.." Sherlock said as he filled the spoon with medicine, and handed to Ryuu. "Why don't we just get this over with?"_

 _"いいえ!" Ryuunosuke shouted, as he knocked the spoon away._

 _"Ack-"_

Attempt #4: He swatted the spoon, and the medicine got on Holmes' face and doused his pipe.

 _Now Holmes had a good idea as to_ why _it had been taking so long. It didn't matter if the man had chickenpox, Ryuu was not going to cooperate! If any of them wanted him to take his medicine, a little force would have to be called for._

 _"...Right then." Sherlock sighed, as he wiped the medicine off his face with his handkerchief, and set his extinguished pipe aside. "I'll hold him down. Ms. Susato, you hold his nose."_

 _"H-huh?" Ryuu was about to ask what the other man had just said, when his arms were suddenly held down again, and his nose was wedged between two fingers, forcing him to breathe through his mouth._

 _"Wait, what are you-" Then he saw Iris, spoon full of medicine in hand once more. "No. NO!" he shouted in vain, just as the medicine found its way into his mouth. He shook his head, refusing to swallow._

 _"Swallow it, Narudie, and then they'll let go!" Iris instructed, knowing he would have to come up for air eventually._

 _Reluctantly, he obeyed and swallowed the god-awful bitter medicine. Susato and Sherlock let go of him, as Iris had promised, and all Ryuunosuke could do was gag and shake his head in defeat._

Attempt #5: Success!

* * *

"...Like I have a choice." Ryuu forcefully answered, after thinking back on the incident. "Let's just get it over with!"

"Good choice!" Iris remarked happily, relieved at not having to go through that again. "Open wide!"

"Ahhhh!" he obeyed, as the familiar bitter liquid entered his mouth, and he was suddenly unable to breathe again. He groaned as he forced himself to swallow, and gagged afterwards. On the bright side, he was finally able to have his ginger tea!

* * *

Okay! Sorry if this chapter wasn't the best one I've put out there, the next chapter will be a lot better. I had an idea for the flashback, and thought this would be as good as any of a place to put it. Also, in case you were wondering at the start of the chapter, Gregson had Shingles, which happens later on in life for adults who had chickenpox as children. Why was he on the job then?

Because Shingles is only contagious if Person A has it, while Person B never even had chickenpox. And if Person A has it, but otherwise feels fine, they can still go to work.

Translation(s): いいえ! = No!

Also, I know ibuprofen typically works for head and body aches, but, in my experience, it doesn't usually help for whatever reason.

Anyway, I'm rambling! Next chapter will be up soon. Honest reviews, please! c:


	4. Chapter 4

So, I promised Chapter 4 would be better than Chapter 3, but if it isn't, well I've been having some health issues of my own, and minor writer's block on top of that. But, anyway, enjoy! c:

* * *

-Chapter Four-

Ryuunosuke sighed as he stripped off his pjs and submerged himself into the tub. It wasn't so much a sigh out of not wanting to take an oatmeal bath. He actually looked forward to them since he had to start taking them! From the waist down, the itch relief was more soothing and relieving than the calamine lotion and the antihistamine combined.

However, unless he submerged himself further, or took a rag to his upper half, he'd still find himself itching and scratching from the waist up. And neither Iris, nor Susato, were very happy with him when they _did_ spot scratching marks. The problem, though, they were not just about to supervise him while he bathed. Even if Iris was a doctor, she was still a young girl. As for Susato, well, her excuse was social reasons. They would stand in the hallway in front of the bathroom door, but that was it. Today was different, however, as they had come up with a solution to the problem.

Ryuunosuke would find out just what exactly this solution was. And not the easy way, either. As he held the edges of the tub, and was about to submerge himself further, the water level in the tub suddenly rose and he jumped a little as he felt someone poke him from behind with their feet. He turned around to see the only other male resident in the flat sitting in the bath with him.

"H-Holmes-san?!" Ryuu shouted, both horrified and confused.

"Relax, Naruhodou." the great detective sighed. "This is only because Iris and Ms. Susato asked me to keep an eye on you so you don't scratch!"

"If that is true," Ryuu asked, 'irritation' written all over his face. "Then why can't you watch me from _outside_ the bath?"

"To tell the truth, I could. However, they both insisted I could use a bath, anyway." Sherlock explained, with a small chuckle. "Though I have no idea why they say that!"

' _You are the only one who wonders, believe me_!' Ryuu thought, half tempted to make that statement out loud.

"And besides, it isn't like I'm completely naked." Holmes added. "I have shorts on."

A quick glance down proved this as fact for Ryuu, as he saw the detective was indeed wearing a pair of his presumed boxing shorts. Whether Ryuu liked this or not, he knew he was going to have to put up with it. Even if this was the solution for the next week and a half, or until his rashes started to scab over. Whichever came first.

Out of nowhere, he suddenly found himself getting a bowlful of water dumped onto his head. He quickly deduced the source as the great detective himself, and confronted him.

"What was that for?!" Ryuu shouted, splashing some water in Sherlock's direction.

"Just thought it might help!" the other man answered unfazed, as he playfully splashed Ryuu back. "Though I probably should have given you a warning first."

"' _Probably should have_ ', Holmes-san?" Ryuu sarcastically asked, as he splashed the great detective once again, though he wasn't totally ungrateful; for one, his scalp had finally stopped itching.

"Indeed!" Holmes replied. Another splash, bigger than the last few. Then a knock.

"Enough splashing, both of you!" Iris shouted from the other side of the door.

"Okay, we'll stop!" Ryuu responded, before yet another bowlful of water was dumped on his head, and yelped in reaction. "Agh! Holmes-san, I just told her we would stop!"

"Oh, let me have some fun here, Naruhodou." Sherlock spoke, as calmly as ever. "I don't get to take baths often!"

"You got that right!" Ryuunosuke answered out loud, and received another splash in response. He could have sworn he heard giggling from the other side of the door as he said that. He soon got hold of the bowl that Holmes was using to dump water onto him, and returned the favor by drenching the great detective.

"I said that's enough!" Iris shouted again, but was ignored.

"Don't make us go fetch Hudson-sama!" Susato spoke up, and with those words, all splashing ceased.

In the wake of the splash fight, about half of the bath water was now on the floor. All garments belonging to both men were now drenched, forcing Ryuu to sit in a towel, until his pjs were dry enough for him to put back on. After that, it was decided Holmes would continue to be the one designated to supervise Ryuunosuke during his oatmeal baths. But from _outside_ the bath!

* * *

And that's chapter four, officially the shortest chapter in this story! When I first started the rough draft of this fanfic, I thought: "What's a chickenpox fic without at least one instance of an oatmeal bath?" And now, I finally have a place for that idea! :D

So, I guess it's obvious by this point, I did want Ryuu to have a little one-on-one interaction with each of his friends, thus why it was mostly just him and Iris in the last chapter. With that out in the open, all I can say for Chapter 5 is, get ready for some serious RyuuSusa fluff! Honest reviews, please! c:


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 is finally here! Time for some good ol' Ryusato! 3 I've been looking forward to writing this chapter, since I ship it so hard! Alright, before I go into fangasms over these two: Enjoy!

Fair warning: this chapter contains Case 1 spoilers. All characters belong to Capcom, not me!

* * *

-Chapter Five-

 _"Please! You have to believe me! There really was a woman there!" Ryuunosuke pleaded, tightly grasping the stand as if it was his only support. Which is sort of was, in that moment._

 _The courtroom was near deserted, sans for Ryuu, and the Judge, who was ready to give his verdict. Their voices echoed as they spoke._

 _"You only spout lies, defendant!" His Honor bellowed, as he glared down at Ryuu. "Thus this court finds you...GUILTY!"_

 _"No! Please! I swear, I am innocent!" Ryuu cried, and he nearly fell backwards in shock and disbelief._

 _"Court is adjourned!" With that, the gavel gave a thunder-like boom as it slammed down._

* * *

"NO!" Ryuunosuke shouted, while jolting upright, as he awoke from a horrible nightmare. As he took deep breaths, it occurred to him there was a thunderstorm taking place outside. The harsh pouring of the rain did its best to calm him down, but thunder and lighting had other plans. Ryuu's anxious eyes tried to adjust to the pitch dark room, while thunder and lightning created enough light to cast a shadow. Ryuu jumped as he saw two glowing eyes about four, maybe five feet from the ground, and heard it growl in his direction.

' _It's a monster_!' he thought. It seemed his secondary fear of the dark was ready to haunt him in spades, and whether this 'monster' was real or fever-induced didn't matter, as Ryuu soon bolted out of the room, only to be greeted by more darkness!

He breathed heavy breaths, as dizziness caught up with him, and he soon found himself on his knees, clutching whatever was closest to him. Sweat rolled down his face, as did tears. For a brief moment, he didn't know where he was, or where everyone else was, he just couldn't think straight! Panicked, he let out a scream, and openly cried. Soon after, he heard footsteps. He wanted to ask who was there, but couldn't get the words to come out. Then, a light spawned from nowhere. He winced a little at the brightness. The next thing he knew, Susato was kneeling next to him once more. Ryuu felt so relieved to see a familiar face in front of him.

"Whatever is the matter, Naruhodou-sama?" she asked, concern and sympathy all too apparent in her voice. She frowned, and her shoulders sank as she observed the feverish Ryuunosuke sobbing on the floor and clutching the edge of a bookshelf. She raised his head so his eyes met hers once more, and got a good look at his sweaty, flushed, tear-stained face.

"I had a nightmare, and th-there's a monster in my room! It-it had angry glowing eyes, and it was growling at me." he stammered, not caring that he sounded like a 5-year-old. "It f-followed me out o-of my n-nightmare..." he added, while Susato laid her nice cool hand on Ryuu's burning forehead.

"I doubt there is really a monster!" Susato reassured with a small smile. Internally, she couldn't help but laugh that someone like Ryuunosuke Naruhodou would fear an imaginary monster! Yet still, she digressed. "Why don't we go see for ourselves?" she suggested, as she helped Ryuu stand up.

* * *

Ryuunosuke stood at the threshold of his bedroom door while Susato went in to find the 'monster' he claimed to have seen. Upon turning the lamp on, it was discovered that Wagahai had been sitting atop Ryuu's dresser and purring.

"Wagahai, you naughty cat!" Susato playfully scolded the calico, before picking him up to show Ryuu.

"I-it was just the cat?!" Ryuu asked, as he entered the room, now irritated and embarrassed from his earlier episode.

"Yes." She answered as she showed him the feline culprit. "Nothing to be afraid of!" She stated as she escorted Wagahai out of the attic. Susato soon came back with a pillow and blanket under her arm, and helped Ryuu back into his bed. Once he was lying down, she laid her pillow and blanket out, then sat right beside him. Naturally, Ryuu was surprised.

"S-Susato-san?" Ryuu stuttered. Normally, when he was perfectly healthy, he would not have minded as much. However, he still had chickenpox. And when he thought about it, none of his friends had mentioned if they had already had the illness or not. He would certainly hate it if he got any of them sick.

"It's okay, Naruhodou-sama." Susato softly reassured as she took the cloth that was now sitting atop Ryuu's covers, re-soaked it in the bowl, wrung it out and wiped the tears and sweat from Ryuu's face before repeating the process and placing it atop his forehead once more.

"B-but my chickenpox." He tried to reason.

"It's been a week, hasn't it?" Susato asked, placing a finger to her lips. "Earlier today, Iris-sama said you won't be as contagious now."

' _That isn't entirely what I meant, but alright..._ ' he thought, before another question entered his mind. "Susato-san?"

"Yes?"

"Something has been bothering me since I first got sick." Ryuu explained. "You've been more...How should I say it?...More _assertive_ with me." he paused, then continued. "And it seems like you always get mad at me when I scratch."

Right then, Susato gave her reasoning.

"I'm fully aware of how I have been this past week. I don't like it when I see that Naruhodou-sama has been scratching-" she paused and smacked Ryuu's hand with her own as he tried to reach for an itch, to which he apologized, and she continued. "-like that. You see, a few years ago, both of Susato's younger siblings caught chickenpox. Everything was fine until father caught them as well."

"So he didn't have chickenpox as a child either?" Ryuu questioned.

"No, he didn't." Susato continued. "Despite how much we told him not to, he would scratch at his rashes." A pause. "His rashes got infected and he had to be given so much medicine. He still has scars from then..." Another pause. "So you see, when Susato saw Naruhodou-sama had caught chickenpox." Yet another pause.

"You thought of your father then." Ryuu spoke.

"Yes." Susato confirmed, then continued. "I just don't want you to go through that suffering as well." she choked up as she made that statement. She didn't mean to get emotional about it, but she couldn't help it when the topic of her father's health was brought up. After all, he wasn't always in tip-top condition. There seemed to be some understanding anyway, however, as she felt something cool and damp catch her falling tears, and wipe away the ones that stuck to her face. She opened her eyes to see Ryuunosuke sitting up in front of her, cloth in hand.

"Na-Naruhodou-sama?"

There was a long pause as he reached over to re-soak the cloth, wring it out, and put it back on his forehead before he gave her a response.

"Do not worry, Susato-san." Ryuu stated, as he laid down, and turned to face her. "I promise I will not scratch at my chickenpox anymore." he took her hand into his. "And I promise I will be back to my normal self before you know it!"

"Susato is glad to hear Naruhodou-sama say those words!" She smiled. Out of nowhere, she gave Ryuu a small peck on the cheek. "Good night, Naruhodou-sama." She softly spoke as she laid down as well, her hand staying in his.

Ryuunosuke was somewhat surprised by the kiss, but in his now half-awake mind, he didn't mind it too much. "Good night, Susato-san..." he mumbled, after letting out a yawn.

Little did the pair know, as they dozed off to the sound of pouring rain outside, that Ryuunosuke's second promise would come later than anticipated.

* * *

And there's Chapter 5! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I knew since Chapter 2 that Susato had been somewhat bossy and generally OOC, and it honestly didn't take long to think of some good reasons as to why, knowing what goes down with her family in Case 5. Also, I remember in Case 3, Ryuu, in inner monologue, mentions he's still afraid of the dark. (I'm sorry if that isn't really the case, it'll just be my headcanon otherwise!)

What will become of Ryuunosuke now that he is on the road to recovery? Stay tuned for Chapter 6, and find out! Honest reviews, please! c:


	6. Chapter 6

And here it is! The long awaited Chapter 6! I was actually a bit torn on how I wanted this to go, and debating whether or not this would be a good idea to add; but knowing Ryuunosuke's sh*t luck in game, I think this was bound to happen.

So, yeah, here's Chapter 6! Enjoy! c:

* * *

-Chapter Six-

If it wasn't one thing, it was another. Within 12 hours, Ryuunosuke's fever spiked to 40 degrees, and was on and off hallucinating. When he was all there, he would reach out for Susato, who would still be right at his side. When he was hallucinating, however, he would end up calling out to his late best friend, Asougi. His fever was proving stubborn, refusing to go down, no matter how much he sweated. Now, on top of this, 6 hours in, Ryuu was having some of the worst stomach pains of his life and couldn't hold anything down no matter how hard he tried. This was how he found himself sitting in a bath of ice cold water, with the sick bucket just inches away.

"Is he doing any better?" Susato could be heard asking from the other side of the bathroom door.

"I'll check." Holmes answered, and approached Ryuu. "How are you feeling, Naruhodou?" he asked, for once showing some concern for his friend, as he took the thermometer out of Ryuu's mouth, which was put in after he stopped getting sick long enough.

"F-freezing!" Ryuunosuke stuttered out, as he felt a hand on his forehead before it quickly drew back.

Holmes then approached Susato. "Well, his fever went down!" he stated, showing her the thermometer, which now read 37.9 degrees.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Susato breathed a sigh of relief, before worry overcame her again. "What about his stomachaches?"

"Not any better!" she heard Ryuu answer, between labored breathing.

Just then, Iris joined the other two in the hallway. She had just finished speaking with a fellow physician via telecommunications, relaying Ryuu's symptoms with him.

"Get him dried off and dressed." She told them. "Dr. Tucker wishes to see him immediately."

* * *

Ryuunosuke donned his nervous shifting eyes once more. Nobody told him _anything_ about visiting a hospital. Yet there he was, laying down on an exam table that could make a rock feel like a pillow. His thoughts raced through his mind.

 _Why is this table so hard_?

The ceiling lights were near blinding, even for someone without eye problems.

 _Why do the lights have to be so bright_?

On either side of the room, there was shelving and cabinets, all stocked with various medical equipment, including- he gulped -syringes for giving shots.

 _Are they going to give me a shot_? _Or more than one shot_? _How many shots are they allowed to give at one time_?

From somewhere down the hall, he could have sworn he heard a scream.

 _Oh_ , _Kami_! _What did they put that poor soul through_? _What are they going to do to me_?

He would have bolted out of there right then, had his stomach pains not kept him down. His already labored breathing became tight and heavy, and his heartbeat grew faster and faster. For a brief moment, he felt hot all over again. He tightly shut his eyes as he felt them begin to water, yet he couldn't keep the tears from falling, and soon found himself in full-on crying mode. Ryuu didn't care what anyone thought of him in that moment, he just wanted to get as far away from this place as possible!

It would be needless to point out that Ryuu's episode unfolding was not going unnoticed by his friends. They had each become worried for Ryuunosuke. It was bad enough when they had to hold him down to give him his medicine, now he was crying his eyes out in a hospital exam room.

"Wh-what's wrong?" Susato hesitantly asked.

"I don't like this place!" Ryuu shouted, once again not caring if he sounded like a 5-year-old. "This place is scary! I don't wanna be here! I wanna go home!" He went back and forth between screaming in English and in Japanese as made those statements, but regardless, his friends understood him perfectly, and tried to calm him down.

"Everything will be fine, Naruhodou-sama!" Susato stated as she held and squeezed Ryuu's hand.

"Indeed! This is one of the finer institutions in all of London." Sherlock added, as he used his hand to brush Ryuu's hair off of his sweaty forehead.

"Dr. Tucker is very nice and friendly! He would never harm a single one of his patients!" Iris assured, as well, patting and rubbing at Ryuu's arm.

Their words of reassurance actually helped a lot for Ryuunosuke. At least, until Dr. Tucker, a young physician in a white lab coat, entered the exam room. Ryuu let out a faint hiss as he tried to scoot away, but a sharp pain in his stomach, and a tight squeeze from his hand made him stay put.

"Mr. Ryuunosuke Naruhodou!" Dr. Tucker cheerfully greeted, somehow oblivious to Ryuu's scared demeanor. "I've heard much about you from Dr. Watson." It took Ryuu a few seconds to realize he was referring to Iris. "Based on what she's told me, I've got a hunch as to what might be wrong with you! I'll just go ahead and check your tummy just to be sure." he stated as he gently pressed on Ryuu's bloated abdomen. Ryuu inhaled sharply, trying not to scream in pain.

"It's most likely..." Dr. Tucker said, as he let up on Ryuu's abdomen. "...I'll have to take your appen-"

"Um, Dr. Tucker? A word, if you would." Iris spoke up, leading the good doctor to the hallway.

"Yes?" he questioned.

"It's about Ryuunosuke, doctor. Ever since we first arrived, he's been showing severe anxiety from being in this hospital. He even went into a state of panic, just minutes before you arrived." Iris explained. "What I'm saying is, assuming you were about to say what I think you were, that you _may not want_ to spell it flat out that he's going to have to undergo an operation!"

"Ah, I see what you're getting at, doctor!" Dr. Tucker responded, as he pondered the situation. "I'll make sure to inform my colleagues on this then! In the meantime..." he paused, as he reached into his coat pocket, and and conjured a small bottle of pills. "Have him take one of these. Tell him it's ibuprofen."

"What is it really?" Iris asked, suspicious.

"A sedative." Dr. Tucker answered. "It'll keep his nerves calm until he gets the anesthesia."

"Understood." Iris remarked, as she was handed the medicine.

* * *

Iris had successfully coaxed Ryuunosuke into taking the "ibuprofen", thankfully for her, without any questions. Instead, he decided it was his turn to squeeze Susato's hand, while he occasionally glanced up at her for reassurance.

"Everything will be fine." Susato assured him with a smile.

After awhile, a nurse came in, carrying some hospital provided bedclothes for Ryuu to change into. Which he did so with a little assistance from Sherlock. A few more minutes passed before Dr. Tucker arrived in the room again, this time accompanied by an anesthesiologist with a tank of the drug of his profession. Ryuunosuke stared, intimidated at the mask that would soon cover his nose and mouth, and the tube that connected the mask to the tank, which he could only think bad things about.

"Just relax, Ryuunosuke." Dr. Tucker said, trying to keep his patient calm and reassured. "Dr. Marcel here is just going to put this mask on you..." A pause as the mask was put over Ryuu's nose and mouth. "...And you're gonna start to feel a little drowsy. And when you wake up, your tummy-ache will be _all_ gone!"

True to the doctor's word, Ryuu was gradually becoming more and more drowsy. Something he initially fought against, but soon the numbing sensation was too much, and he relaxed. As the anesthesia continued to do its work, he heard talking, though now it was all incoherent in his sleepy, drug-induced mind. He closed his heavy eyes from his blurry vision, and soon found himself in a deep sleep.

* * *

And that's Chapter 6! So maybe this threw some people off, but I'll share what I told one of my followers with the rest of you: Teens and adults who catch chickenpox have an increased, though still rare, chance of developing complications. The most rare being inflammation of certain organs, or rashes developing inside the mouth, while the more common complications are pneumonia and appendicitis. And like I said at the start of the chapter, Ryuunosuke has pretty bad luck in game, so I feel this was bound to happen with him. If you're wondering, he developed appendicitis. And if you're wondering about his "episode", he was having a panic attack triggered by his latrophobia/iatrophobia.

Okay, that's enough rambling. Honest reviews, please! c:


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is finally here! Yay! :D Now originally, this was going to be two separate chapters, but I thought it would be a bit belaboring, so it's all one chapter.

Hope you guys enjoy! c:

* * *

-Chapter Seven-

Two long, agonizing hours had passed. The air in the waiting room couldn't be any more tense. Ryuunosuke's friends had been escorted there after he was knocked unconscious for his appendectomy. Each of them took to their anxiety a little differently: Holmes smoked his pipe more intensely than usual, while Iris kept watch in the hallway, just outside the door, and Susato (the most anxious of the three) paced around the room, trying to distract herself to no avail.

"How long do these surgeries even take?" Susato pondered aloud. She had attempted to ask to go into the operating room with Ryuu when he was first knocked out, but wasn't able to with how fast-paced Dr. Tucker and his colleagues were.

"Just relax, Susie." Iris responded with a hint of irritability. "Dr. Tucker is a professional and knows what he's doing. I wouldn't trust Narudie with anyone else."

"If you say so..." Susato muttered under her breath and went back to pacing. It wasn't the answer she was looking for that time, or the previous two times she had asked, but she knew Iris could only tell her so much, and she knew the young girl was probably exhausted from the day's turn of events. Still, she couldn't help it. She worried for Ryuunosuke, as she worried for Kazuma when he was still alive. As she turned to continue pacing, Dr. Tucker and Dr. Marcel entered the waiting room.

"He pulled through just fine!" Dr. Tucker announced, and the three breathed a near unison sigh of relief.

"The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet, but you are still free to see him." Dr. Marcel added. "Come along, I'll escort you." As the five entered the patients' ward, Ryuunosuke had barely started to come to. Susato approached him first, and was thus the first one he saw when he opened his eyes.

"Su-Susato-san...?" Ryuu slurred, as he winced from both the bright ceiling lights, and the side effect of dizziness from the anesthesia.

"I'm here, Naruhodou-sama! You'll be fine." Susato said, as she took his hand into hers. Meanwhile, Dr. Tucker was speaking to Holmes and Iris.

"He'll be discharged to go home first thing in the morning, after everything checks out." the good doctor explained. "Recovery time usually lasts four weeks at the most, but I've had patients recover in half that time. Just make sure he takes it easy."

"We will, doctor..." Iris responded as she rubbed at her sleepy eyes. It had been a little over half a day since since Ryuu's complications began, and now that it was all resolved, she begun to realize how tired she really was. Holmes had also noticed, and scooped little Iris up into his arms. "Oh, and doctor?" she spoke up again.

"Yes?"

"You can send the hospital bill to Inspector Tobias Gregson, along with this note!" she firmly stated, as she handed him a note that read the following:

 _You gave him your rashes,_

 _so_ _you're_ _taking care of his hospital bill!_

 _-Iris Watson_

"Alright, I'll make sure it gets to him!" the good doctor stated as he slipped the note into his lab coat pocket.

"Ah, Dr. Tucker, I'd hate to interrupt..." Dr. Marcel approached them. "...But Ms. Susato was wondering if she could stay with Mr. Ryuunosuke while we keep him overnight for observation."

"I think that would _ideal_ , in this case." Dr. Tucker answered to both his colleague and Susato, who was listening in. "Go fetch some extra sheets for her, will you?" he requested out of Dr. Marcel. After that, Sherlock took Iris home, with the latter promising Susato and Ryuu they would be back to pick them up first thing the next morning.

* * *

-Two Weeks Later-

Ryuunosuke was feeling a _lot_ better than he was three weeks ago. His chickenpox were finally gone, he would be getting his stitches from the surgery taken out in two weeks, and he would be back to taking on cases in one week! Content all of that mess was now behind him, Ryuu leaned back in his bed, while he read over some case files and newspaper articles. All was peaceful in 221B Baker Street. Though, it wouldn't last for very long...

"NARUHODOU!" a scream erupted, its source being Sherlock Holmes, as he came rushing into Ryuu's bedroom. As the still pj-clad detective nearly jumped on him, Ryuu noticed familiar rashes on Holmes' face, neck, and hands. "You had chickenpox and you gave them to me?! Take them back! Take them back!" he shouted, smearing his infected hands all over Ryuu's now immune face, before his other symptoms caught up with him, and he sank away from Ryuu in a dizzy coughing fit.

"I said get back into bed, Holmsie!" Iris called out, as she caught up to her new patient. "And leave Narudie alone! He's still recovering."

"Alright, just give me a minute..." Holmes slurred as he slowly stood up, and gradually made his way back downstairs while scratching at the back of his neck.

"And no scratching!" Iris reminded him, to which he loudly mumbled an incoherent response.

"...Holmes-san has chickenpox?!" Ryuu inquired, still a bit stunned from the episode that had just occurred.

"Yes, it seems he caught yours." Iris answered. "Don't worry though. I already caught them when I was five."

"I've already had them, too." Susato added, bringing Ryuu some herbal tea on Iris' behalf. "Do you remember that story I told you?"

"The one about your siblings?" Ryuu asked.

"That's right. They gave chickenpox to Susato, too!" she confirmed.

"So all of us are immune!" Iris chimed.

"Iris..." Holmes could be heard whining from downstairs.

"...Well, almost all of us!" she remarked, as she left the attic, leaving just Ryuu and Susato.

"Naruhodou-sama..." Susato sighed as she noticed the scattered papers on Ryuu's bed and the surrounding floor before taking it all up and putting it all in a neat stack on his bedside table.

"Well, I need to pass the time somehow!" Ryuu remarked before taking a few sips of his tea. "And Holmes-san was the one to scatter them to begin with."

"I know that." Susato giggled, then calmly smiled. "I'm just glad you're doing better!" she said as she leaned closer to him.

"Me too." Ryuu answered, leaning into Susato, their foreheads meeting before they both realized what they were about to do, and recomposed themselves. Embarrassed, they looked away from each other. "I'll, uh, I'll just finish my tea." Ryuu stuttered.

"And then you'll get some rest." Susato added, to which Ryuu nodded, while their shared embarrassment subsided. Susato was about to leave when Ryuunosuke spoke up.

"Susato-san?"

"Yes?" she asked.

"Thank you for taking care of me, and for always being by my side." he said.

"You're very welcome, Naruhodou-sama." Susato smiled. And with that, peace returned to the flat once more.

-The End-

* * *

And that concludes The Great Speckled Attorney! I had planned for Sherlock to catch Ryuu's chickenpox from the start, because if anyone hates being sick just as much as (if not more than) Ryuunosuke, it's Holmes.

But man, writing a fanfic for DGS was a lot of fun! So much so, I may do it again! The next time may cover Ryuunosuke's birth (contrast to another DGS fic) or a Ryusato fic (not necessarily PG~ ewe) or whatever you guys want me to write! I'm always open to new ideas! ;)

In the meantime, I'll try to finish I'm (Not) Fine! and continue on Virus.

Honest reviews (and requests) please! c:


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